Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-04-08
IT. AUGUsTINE's BIG WELL.
4 Most Remarkable Dive Into the
Bowels Of She Earth.
Eno,n 49, .IncksonriLle lFIa.l Nea0s

Bowels Of She Earth.
/ From the JacbsonviXs tFIa.) Means.
The magnitude of the operations OF
/ Eenry u. Flagler in ST. Augustine. which
will eventually change the entire archl-
! tectural teatares of that historic city, has
J been the subject OF wonder and interest
| to the whole country. Perhaps none OF
! his vast enterprises in the Ancient city
| has attracted as much interest and at
tention among scientists and thinking
men as his great artesian well.
! In answer to question regarding the
! original intention OF Mr. Flag .er in con-
slrucLmg the huge well, Mr.. kennlsh
! said: Il have frequently been asked that
! question, and my answer is simply water.
| That was primarily the object for when
! the sinking OF the we'll was begun. The
needs of a great hotel sucn as the
| Ponce de Leon are superlatlYe In
| degree, and for hotel OF TINS
| character water in an unstlnted amount
| is one of the most important. The
amount Of water required for drinking,
| coOkin bathing and laundry purposes
and for spTnkhng lawns and walks Will
| be at least 100, 900 gallons day, and II a
constant flow is maintained through the
bathing pools 100000 gallons more Will be
| necessary. This, then, Was the nrst ana
prime intent in sinking well for the
| Ponce de Leon.
1.-The bathing pools l refer to will be
| in the ghborho0d OF 200 1eet long and
| 100 feet wide, varying Ill size somewhat
according to designs now made We will
| have sulphur baths, sea water baths, both
| hot, cold and tepId, and a separate bath
ing pool for each. The Sea water Will be
| obtained by pumping it at high tide from
| the Mantansas, as at that time the water
| will be perfectly pure.
1--WE also wished to determine whether
flow of sufficient volume could be de-
veloped to answer as motive power for
the various requirements OF modern
hotef"
Mir. Keunish then proceeded to enlight-
Ell his auditor with the scientific and
geological aspect Of the case, and the sub
sanitation OF his theory on the subject.
''In addition TO what | have told YOU"
| he continued, "it was not overlooked
| mat in penetrating to depth necessary
| to bring water from beneath the calca-
reOus stratum which impregnates the
water with lime sufficient 10 make it
hard, the temperature might be raised to
| degree useful for hot baths, possibly
even for heating the rooms. AS prepa-
ration Tor penetrating the earth's
crust in pursuit of these objects TO
what might prove uleXampled
| depths, 12-inch pipe was
driven in TO what has been enormously
termed the Water-beariug rock, which has
been found at a depth OF 40 feet. At this
point sulphur water slowly rose IN the
| pipe, discharging about fifty gallons per
! minute. Tnie rock, which proves to be d
| 7-foOt stratum of magnesium limestone,
Is filled with assures, through which the
water slowly forces is way from below.
srhe strata existing between the sur
70. I'm tip1t nah font 10,
is first sand, next equine and then blue
clay. THIS last stratum, which Is "a feet
! in thickness and imperYiOus to water, ,
rests like d huge blanket upon the sui
phur water with it's pressure of over 200
tons to the square loot, and thus I'M
prisons it to Its subterranean cham
Der. If this clay were but 20
leet in thickness the pressure
| beneath would loss il up with It's cover
ing of sand and its 70 ests OF pine and
pOpulous towns, and bear the peninsula
away to be deposited in the ocean depths.
| The waters of the Atlantic and the Gulf
would be united and cover to a depth OF
| 100 ieet what had once been this fair and
beautiful peuinsuiar State. Wherever a
fault occurs in this great covering OF
| blue clay natural spring exists.
sometimes this break in the clay
formation happens to be beyond the coast
! line, as at MataDzas, where the water
boils from great depth, and makes it.
sell evident by its disturbance Of the
water OF the ocean for circle of halt q
mile in diameter. These ocean springs
are known to exist all along the coast OF
Florida, as far southwark as hey West,
and nOrtnward AS far as st. Augustine,
on the Atlantic, and TO Pensacola on the
Gulf. One Of the most remarkable in
stances are the springs at Crystal river
on the Gull OF Mexico. They also exist
in hundreds throughout the State.
"Ehese springs indicate the existence OF
a vast subLerranean sea, which, ii is safe
to say, covers an area of at least 30, 00C
square miles, exerting an upward pres.
sure OF from one to four tons to the
square foot against the under side OF the
blue clay stratum. This pressure may be
stated in round numbers to be 1000, 00C
tons per square mile, OF for the peninsula
of Florida the grand total OF twenty III We
hundred billions OF tons.
"Tnis princely heritage represents the
reservoir OF power which this favored
State is capable OF drawing upon for all
time. Every man who owns an
acre OF land IN Florida has possession OF
a key to unlock the prison door of this
willing genie VINO stands ready TO per :
form wonderful services for man. This
fact, taken ia connection with the even
temperature Of t0e State, its tractabl e
laborlng population unused 10 agitation
such as distract other great labor centres,
and surrounded as il is with water on
nearly tive-sixths Of it's borders, giving it
the advantage of both land and water
transportation facilities, particularly tits
Florida to enter into competition as a
manufacturing centre with the most ia
Vored localities of the world.
"To give an idea OF the present flow OF
the well it can be better appreciated by
comparison. The daily flow is seven
times as great as that OF all the wells
connected with the Jacksonville water
works and twenty-eight times as much as
the flow OF the largest well IN Charles
| tOn.O
In concluding his explanation of the
well and the results obtained by the great
enterprise Mr.. kennlsh continued:
~ do not take for granted the COM
monty accepted theory that this subter-
ranean sea receives it's supply from some
mountain range. The proposition is not
tenable. There is not area enough in any
mountain country adjacent to Florida to
account tor a hundredth part OF the
water pressure underlying the whole
peninsula OF the State. We have n
theory based on what we believe 10
/ t,, a. 10 ,1tt...